Think about it

Tuesday

Sep 30, 2008 at 12:01 AMSep 30, 2008 at 10:59 PM

Trainer X

Darin St. George offers weekly advice of exercise, health and the mind-body relationship.

Darin St. George/Daily News correspondent

I read one book, over and over again. It is a "philosophical revolution told in the form of an action thriller," and it is amongst the most influential books in history (some say right behind The Bible). The book is "Atlas Shrugged" - no, it is not a weightlifting manual, as my friend Paul thought - and it is a book that will flat-out change your life if you take the time to understand it.

In it, Ayn Rand asks the question, "What happens when the people whose minds run the world decide to go on strike?" Let's face it; if you think for one second that this column is about fitness training and exercise you are bananas!

Rational thought precedes every action that successful people take. Sure, the knee-jerk reaction to your hand in a flame is reactionary, but when you really focus on non-emotional decision making, your life will reach its fullest potential.

Logic tells us that making coffee at home saves $3 a day (multiplied by 365, that's roughly $1,100 a year!). If I pay an extra $1,100 on the principal of my mortgage every year, I'll save up to $70,000 (or pay my mortgage off eight years early)! Now, if you are thinking, "I know, but I have to have my (insert favorite shop's name here) coffee every morning," then this column is for you.

In the novel, one of the characters says, "Contradictions do not exist. Whenever you think you are facing a contradiction, check your premises. You will find that one of them is wrong." So, in the aforementioned paragraph describing the savings I will reap and how much it will save me over the course of time, I either know or I don't; I cannot know, BUT...for "but" is a term that is used to introduce an opposing point to follow. You cannot "know" that you can save all that money (and the effort and time spent making it) and knowingly throw it all away to pay someone to make what you can easily make at home with little investment of time or money.

Have I driven around the contiguous United States in order to prove a point? Yes, and although brevity is a sign of intelligence, I must elaborate on a grand scale to meet my audience head on this time.

If you want to get in shape, I have illustrated both qualitatively and quantitatively in this column each week how to do so; if you don't want to, ignore my logic. Eat a healthy diet composed of simple foods, enough protein to maintain and build muscle, and exercise like you did when you were in high school. This isn't rocket science, people.

Darin St. George is a personal fitness coach at Gold's Gym in Natick. Visit his Web site at www.TrainerX.com.

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